Month: March 2019

QuidditchUK are sad to announce that Dave Goddin has decided to retire as Gameplay Director at the end of the 2018/2019 season.

As one of the most widely respected referees throughout the international community, Dave has been paramount in his role as Gameplay Director since joining the Executive Team midway through the 2017/2018 season.

His knowledge and attitude towards the sport have amounted to countless contributions to the sport. Dave’s leadership has directly shaped the rules and policies that govern how our game is played. Being part of the gameplay committee that wrote and advised on the current IQA 2018/2020 rulebook now widely used by the international community, and being a key contributor to the many QuidditchUK tournaments, gameplay, and player policies that have been introduced over the last two seasons.

We thank him for his tireless effort, his immense contribution, his patience, and his wisdom.

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The gameplay director role is open and can be found on the Volunteers Page.

If you’re interested in the role please don’t hesitate to contact us with any questions you may have.

The following information covers the competitive structure of the British Quidditch Cup, and breaks down the tournament format which will be used throughout the weekend.

Group Draw

The qualifying teams will be ranked 1-32, based on the following criteria:

Most recently attended QuidditchUK tournament

EQT

Regionals

Development Cup

Ranking at their most recently attended QuidditchUK tournament

Where two teams have the same ranking from their most recently attended tournament, the tiebreakers will be:

Highest average QPD/match

Lowest average match duration

Fewest red cards

Fewest yellow cards

Fewest blue cards

The teams will then be split into 4 pods (1-4) of 8 teams by descending overall ranking. Teams from each pod will be allocated randomly to one of 8 groups (A-H). Once all teams from Pod 1 have been allocated to a group, teams from Pod 2 will be allocated, and so on until all teams have been allocated and all groups have 4 teams.

Where the draw of a pod would place a team into the same group as a team in the same club, the group allocation for that pod will be re-randomised to ensure that no intra-club games take place on Day One of the tournament.

Notes on seeding:

As Portsmouth have declined their BQC place, the Southern teams ranked 12-14 are re-ranked to 11-13 within their region.

Due to disciplinary action, Sheffield Squids are re-ranked as 16th at Northern, with Northern teams 9-16 re-ranked to 8-15 within their region.

There is no separate regional “balancing” process in the seeding for BQC. Regional variation has already been accounted for in the season structure:

The allocation of BQC spots from regionals was weighted based on region size

The allocation of EQT spots was based on regional performance, and the results of EQT have been used to seed the top 12 teams

The Dev Cup qualification route was not region-specific

The Group Draw for BQC 2019 is:

Group 1

Group 2

Group 3

Group 4

Group 5

Group 6

Group 7

Group 8

Liverpuddly Cannons

Southampton Quidditch Club

Oxford Mammoths

Glasgow Grim Reapers

Werewolves of London Firsts

London Unspeakables

Velociraptors

London Quidditch Club

Megalodons

Leeds Griffins

Bath QC

Manchester Manticores

Warwick Quiddich Club

Nottingham Nightmares

Werewolves of London Seconds

Holyrood Hippogriffs Firsts

Bournemouth Banshees

Durhamstrang

Oxford Radcliffe Chimeras

Swansea Swans

Exeter Eagles

York Horntails

Tornadoes QC

St Andrews Snidgets

Bristol Bears

Winchester Quidditch Club

Holyrood Hippogriffs Seconds

Leicester Thestrals

London Unstoppables

Derby Daemons

Sheffield Squids

Chester Centurions

Day One

Day One will consist of 8 round robins, in which each team will play every other team in its group. After Day One, teams will be ranked based on the standard QuidditchUK Ranking Criteria.

Day Two

The top 16 teams will compete in a seeded single-elimination upper bracket, the winner of which will be crowned BQC champion. The bottom 16 teams will also compete in a single-elimination lower bracket.

The Quidditch Premier League, QuidditchUK, and Enrich Education are pleased to announce the creation of the Youth Quidditch Group, a formalised partnership that will see the three organisations further commit to developing youth quidditch in the UK and beyond.

The three organisations extended their agreement by a further five years after a successful one-year contract. The first year focused on naming Enrich Education as the exclusive Quidditch Premier League and QuidditchUK partner for youth quidditch services, and this is continued under the new contract.

Key areas of focus for the newly formed Youth Quidditch Group will be the scaling of youth quidditch sessions across the country through an affiliate membership and coaching qualification programme, providing access to quality standardised equipment for schools and youth clubs, establishing a standardised youth quidditch rulebook accessible for players of all ages, and the introduction of a youth league and a school membership programme from the Quidditch Premier League and QuidditchUK respectively.

“This is a massive step towards our ultimate goal – getting quidditch into every school across the UK, getting young people more active, and expanding the talent pathways in the sport to the adult game,” said Jack Lennard, Director of the Quidditch Premier League. “Enrich Education have done an incredible amount of work since we signed the initial contract with them last year, so it’s an absolute pleasure to be increasing the level of commitment to our partnership alongside our national governing body.”

“Suffice to say, our work with Enrich and QPL focussing on the youth side of the game is one of our biggest achievements to date,” said Mel Piper, President of QuidditchUK. “The creation of the Youth Quidditch Group is what will take our sport to the next level, and create a sustainable future and constant talent stream. Quidditch has already made such a positive difference to many children, providing an active outlet for those not interested in mainstream sports, and a way into reading for those already engaged in sport.”

“The last twelve months have clearly shown a huge appetite for quidditch, from schools and young people across the country. Quidditch is perfect for enhancing a school’s sports premium offer and engaging all pupils in physical activity,” said Matt Vaudrey, Director of Enrich Education. “We are delighted to have entered into a new, long-term agreement with QuidditchUK and the Quidditch Premier League. Some of the plans we have for the growth of the sport at a youth level are really exciting and will ensure that quidditch continues to contribute to sustainable improvements to the physical education, physical activity and sport on offer in schools.”

In the 2018 calendar year, a total of 58 schools and over 8400 young people participated in introductory quidditch events, in the North West of England. This number is set to double in 2019 and events will be taking place all over the country. The first ever regional school tournaments took place towards the end of 2018, and a national school competition is planned for the new academic year.